


You Walked into the Room (On a Friday Afternoon)

by CaliforniaQueen



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Because every song is Reylo now, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, F/M, Fluff, Friday Fluff, Happy Ending, Marriage Proposal, Mutual Pining, Not Beta Read, Song: Paralyzed (Big Time Rush), The song was stuck in my head, fat cats, happy everything
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:55:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27645125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaliforniaQueen/pseuds/CaliforniaQueen
Summary: Just go listen to this pop song and there’s your summary. 🤣https://youtu.be/xDpHzLWl9IY
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 4
Kudos: 56





	You Walked into the Room (On a Friday Afternoon)

**Author's Note:**

> My children watched Big Time Rush religiously when they were little. (I’m pretty sure TGC still watches it, but she won’t admit it) Paralyzed was my favorite of their songs. And of course, where there’s a catchy pop-tune, a Reylo AU will follow. So I wrote some stuff down weeks ago and promptly forgot about it until last night. Finished it up, added a bit this morning and badda bing you have some fluff for your Friday. I hope it gives you the warm fuzzies you deserve! Xoxo

* * *

It was 4:47 pm on Friday when Ben solo first laid eyes on the woman he was going to marry. At least that was what he told himself at 4:50 pm after one hundred eighty seconds spent cataloging every detail from her lustrous mahogany bob, her freckles, her hazel eyes, her dimples, and her lean, strong body draped in a green sundress with tiny white daisies patterned across the bias. 

Vaguely aware that three full minutes of staring at someone was borderline creepy at best, he still was unable to make himself get up and walk across the hall and to the reception desk to talk to her. It wasn't until 4:55 pm when she gave the receptionist a friendly handshake and turned for the door that Ben was able to shake off whatever had rendered him paralyzed from the neck down for eight full minutes. 

His rolling chair made a clanging sound that echoed past the rows of cubicles as it banged against the metal filing cabinet behind Ben’s desk. The force of his enthusiastic leap from his seat nearly propelled him forward over the desk as it simultaneously shot his chair backwards.

Poe Dameron had to pick that very moment to stand in front of Ben’s cubicle, effectively halting any forward momentum that would have brought Ben closer to his future wife. 

“You okay buddy? Having trouble with your chair?” He grinned wickedly, always ready to tease anyone over anything at any time. 

“Yeah.” Ben brushed off Poe’s mockery, eager to leave the building and catch up with her before she disappeared. He had no idea what he would do if he did catch her; he had a million things he could say, but nothing really seemed right—or sane for that matter. 

“I’m gonna need you to clear off that empty desk,” Poe continued. Ben just nodded, tuning him out and trying to subtly look over his head to see if she was still in his line of sight. He felt panicked when he watched through the floor to ceiling windows as she turned the corner and disappeared from view. 

“Be right back!” he yelped before pushing past Poe and running past reception to exit the office building, turning in the direction he saw her go, and hoping a hefty charitable donation would make up for shoving so many people out of his way. 

He felt like a wild salmon swimming upstream, fighting the flow of traffic, determined to reach her. When he got to the corner and followed her route, he scanned the crowded sidewalk for blocks, hoping to catch a glimpse of her green dress weaving through the mass of pedestrians. 

After five minutes of desperate craning like a meerkat on guard duty, he gave up and trudged back to his office building, waving at the security guard who was just getting ready to lock up for the night. He smiled his thanks when the guard let him in, shuffled to his cubicle, and flopped into his desk chair. 

His screen saver had turned on in his absence, and Ben stared at the picture of his rather rotund calico, taken last year at Christmas. The lazy cat was curled up asleep under the Christmas tree among tissue and ribbons, like the gift he believed himself to be. Ben had not been able to resist taking the photo and sending it to his cousin Jannah, who insisted Jed needed his own Instagram. Ben had relented, and now Jed had quite the following online. He smirked at the devil-may-care attitude of his feline companion. 

“Guess it’s just you and me again tonight, buddy.”

He wondered briefly if the dream girl was fond of cats, but put it out of his mind, knowing that there was probably no way he’d ever see her again. As he shut down his computer and gathered his things, Ben sighed and vowed that the next time he had the chance to talk to a woman like that, he would take it.   
  


* * *

At 9:06 am on Monday, Ben met his new office mate. She sidled up beside him with a cheerful, “Good morning!” casting a physical shadow over him that matched the one in his daydream where his disgruntled inner child was sitting and pouting. He glanced up to find the cause of his personal eclipse and was startled to see her standing there. He jumped up out of his seat, once again causing it to ricochet back into his filing cabinet. 

“Dammit, Solo!” he heard Rose Tico on the other side of his partition shout. “You’re going to give me a heart attack. Can’t you just stand up nicely?”

Ben ran his hand through his hair and mumbled a sheepish apology. His ears felt warm and he was certain they were a bright pink, flashing like neon signs bracketing his head. 

“Ben Solo?” his dream girl asked. 

“Um, yeah. Ben. That’s me. I’m Ben Solo.” Ben lifted his hand in what started as a wave, but veered into him pointing at himself with his thumb. As if there were anyone else in the cubicle she could be addressing. 

She giggled and the sound went straight to his head like a glass of champagne. It was everything good and sweet. 

“I’m Rey. Rey Johnson. I’m your new roomie. Mr. Dameron said I should take this desk.”

She gestured with the cardboard box she was holding to the empty desk opposite Ben, before setting it down and extending her hand. 

This time, he didn’t freeze, second guess himself, or let anything else stop him. He took her hand and held it, maybe for a bit too long. Long enough to see the flush creep up her neck to her cheeks. Long enough for her to smile shyly and glance down at her feet shuffling on the high-traffic office carpet. 

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Rey.”

“Same here, Ben.”

“Oh my god you two are already getting on my nerves and it’s only 9:10. I’ll move desks. I swear to god.” 

Rey cringed and pulled her hand out of Ben’s grasp. 

“Sorry,” she mumbled, more to Ben than to Rose, who only grumbled and went back to the task of typing with such force Ben thought she’d wear the keys down before week’s end. 

“Why don’t I give you a tour?” Ben asked. 

Rey grinned and nodded in response. Ben led her down the hall to the breakroom for a cup of the worst coffee she would ever have. 

* * *

She’d already toured the offices a week ago when she was hired, but when she had seen the dark haired man sitting alone in his cubicle, who looked so sweet and shy, she had asked Poe about him. 

“Him? That’s Ben Solo. Yeah, he’s a good guy. Kind of quiet. Likes board games. Bit of a nerd. We’re going out for drinks tonight. You should join us.”

“Oh no, I really can’t. But thanks for the invitation.”

She’d pouted later, mentally berating herself over a pint of Cherry Garcia while the TV droned in the background. She was always so timid, never taking a chance on anything. If she wasn’t careful she was going to end up dying alone because she was too nervous to make eye contact with a man.

In a flash of irritation she plunked the ice cream on the coffee table, snatched up her phone, and searched for any social media presence for Ben Solo. To her dismay, there was no Twitter or Facebook account with any iteration of his name. 

She was scrolling Instagram when she  
finally found one single photo of him under the handle @thelastskywalker. He was out of focus, not the subject of the picture, but his features couldn’t be mistaken for anyone else. When she realized it was him she was able to focus on what  _ was _ the subject of the shot—a fat calico cat with a Galaxy Wars patterned collar. The caption read “Happy Galaxy Wars Day from Jed!”

Her heart skipped a beat and restarted with a thud. 

She’d never admit to anyone that she spent the next hour alternating between his cat’s Instagram history (careful not to like anything so as not to seem like a psychopath) and her favorite designer’s wedding collection. 

A girl could dream, couldn’t she?

The next Friday, when she had come to fill out her paperwork, she had requested the desk next to Ben’s, claiming it had really good lighting and a nice view of the city outside, ignoring Poe’s knowing smirk. She spent the last few minutes of her time at the front desk, chatting with the receptionist Kaydel, and trying to catch his eye. 

She thought she’d captured his attention, but he must have been lost in thought, staring into empty space. It was nearly five o’clock and she was running late for an appointment, so she reluctantly shook hands with Kaydel and waved goodbye, leaving through the glass doors with the promise to herself that Monday morning she  _ would  _ talk to Ben Solo. 

* * *

And so here Rey was, on Monday morning, choking down an awful cup of coffee with cream, two sugars, and a spoonful of anxiety, just to hear him explain the break room etiquette in his soothing voice. She followed him around like an imprinted duckling for fifteen minutes before returning to their cubicle and beginning to unpack her belongings. She adjusted her desk chair, and spun around in time to catch his screen saver, almost squealing at the sight. 

“Oh look at sweet baby Jed! He’s so fat I just lo—“

Rey stopped short when she saw Ben snap around and look at her, a mixture of surprise and suspicion on his face. She realized what she had done, but it was too late. Now he would know what a crazy stalker she was. 

_ Way to go, Rey. _

“How do you know my cat’s name?”

There were two choices Rey could make. One, she could lie and say that someone told her he had a cat. Two, she could stop being afraid and take a risk on something for once. She took a deep breath and dove in. 

“I’m not crazy I swear. I—I asked about you when I was here last week and looked you up and found your cat’s Instagram. I spent way too long looking at pictures of him.” She blew out a long breath and felt her face flush with embarrassment. Ben just sat there staring in shock. 

“I promise I’m not crazy,” she said again, sounding a little less sure of herself. It seemed a lifetime before Ben’s expression relaxed, and he looked at her with the softest expression. He looked almost—relieved?

“You looked me up?” he asked with a small smile. His cheeks were pink and he was fidgeting with his hands. Rey wondered why  _ he _ was the one to look like he was embarrassed. She could feel her heart hammering in fear at the thought that she had embarrassed him. 

“Yeah,” she whispered, looking down at the carpet and back up in surprise as the wheels from his chair came closer. 

“I followed you,” he said. “On Friday when you left. I sat there like an idiot watching you and not doing anything about it. When I finally came to my senses, you were gone. I was afraid I wouldn’t see you again.”

Rey felt like she was floating. This beautiful person couldn’t possibly feel the same way she did, and yet here they were, laying it all out on the table.

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“I asked Poe to let me sit here so I could talk to you,” she admitted. 

“Okay look.” a voice came from behind them and they turned to see a petite woman with long dark hair and mischievous eyes narrowing at them over the wall of the cubicle. “You two are adorable. I’ll give you that. But I can’t concentrate with front row seats to your meet-cute so can you just exchange numbers and text inappropriately during work like the rest of us? Thanks so much.” She gave them a wink and a thumbs up and sank back behind the partition. 

They looked back at each other and burst into laughter at Rose’s unsolicited advice. Rey turned and grabbed her phone, handing it to Ben with a raised eyebrow, watching him enter his number into her contacts. They swapped and she did the same. When she gave it back she giggled at him texting her immediately, 

_ Hi, Rey. _

_ Hi yourself, Ben.  _

_ Dinner after work? _

_ Definitely.  _

_ Preferences? _

_ Whatever sounds good to you. I’m not picky. I do have a question though… _

_ Okay? _

_ Will I get to meet Jed after? _

* * *

It was 2:34 on a Friday afternoon, six months later, when they arrived home early, getting a “jump on the holiday” as Poe had put it. Ben watched Rey hang her jacket up in the hall closet, kick off her shoes and flop into her favorite chair, making kissy sounds to coax Jed out of his hiding place. It was their regular Friday routine, if a little earlier than usual, and Ben loved the feeling it gave him to see her so comfortable and at home. 

The telltale jingle of Jed’s bell and the pit pat of his paws on the hardwood floor signaled his arrival. He leaped into Rey’s lap, his chubby body causing an “oof” to escape Rey, followed by a small giggle that tinkled as merrily as Jed’s bell. Ben watched anxiously as Rey absentmindedly pet the cat, murmuring nonsensical terms of endearment to the otherwise indifferent cat who was just there for the cuddle. 

_ Maybe I should do this differently, _ he thought right before he heard her gasp. 

Rey leaned back to relax and pet the cat, just like she always did when they came home from work, only this time was a little different. Her finger tapped something attached to the collar—something that wasn’t shaped like a bell. Her eyes flew open and in her haste to verify what she thought it might be, she jerked her body, causing a disgruntled Jed to jump down and run merrily across the room. 

“Wait!” she yelped at the same time Ben hollered, “Come back you little demon!”

Jed panicked and took off, running into the bedroom and sliding under the bed like he was trying to break a two-run tie in the World Series by stealing home. Rey and Ben ran after and tried to coax him out with no luck. 

“He’s not coming out,” she said, moving up to her knees and brushing her hands off on her pants. “He had something on his collar. What was it?”

She looked over to see Ben kneeling in front of her, a little velvet box in his hand. Her eyes went wide and she shrieked. 

“Oh my god, Jed! Come back you rotten little—“

“Rey,” Ben interrupted, laughing at her frantic behavior. “It’s okay. That was just for show. I have a backup. You didn’t think I’d actually put my grandmother’s ring on that cat, did you?” He opened the box and presented a simple diamond ring on a white gold band. Rey gasped and felt her eyes fill with tears. 

“Reyanne Isobel Johnson. When you walked into the room on that Friday, you took my breath away with your beauty. Every Friday since then you’ve made my life bigger and brighter and more than I ever thought it could be. I love you more than my cat.”

Rey burst out laughing through her tears, reaching forward to cup his cheeks and kiss him soundly before letting him continue.  


“So I wanted to ask you to spend all your Friday afternoons with me. Be my wife?”

It wasn’t until much later, after a multitude of kisses, touches, gasps and sighs, laying on his chest, wearing nothing but her ring, that Rey actually confirmed it with a yes. 


End file.
